Mohsen Rezaei said that if the martyrs of the eight-year Iraq-Iran war were present today they would form a united front around the Supreme Leader and the nation.

Speaking on the anniversary of the death of Brigadier General Pilot Abbas Babaii, Razaei said, "If the martyrs of the eight-year were among us today, they would have asked us not to attack the people in the name of the Leader and not to raid dormitories in the name of the Leader."

"[They would have told us] that the Islamic Republic means the people and the Leadership, and separating these two would result only in chaos."

"They would have asked the country's higher ups to gather around the Leader and to show the world their unity so that the enemies of the Iranian nation, who want to see discord, disagreement and divide in Iran these days, take this wish to their graves."

Qom interim Friday Prayers Leader Ayatollah Javadi-Amoli said differences were not in the interest of anyone and conflicts should be resolved internally.

"Our country is an independent one and we must realize that foreigners will never do anything for our sake and if there is a problem we must resolve it among ourselves," he said.

Javadi-Amoli added that nations cannot achieve anything in a state of disagreement. "When there is disagreement between two people it weakens both sides," he said. "We have many things in common and there are many unifying elements among us that we need to take into consideration."

"The Supreme Leader, sources of emulation and our officials have repeatedly stressed the importance of restraining our tongues, our speech and our writing and avoiding actions that can create tension."

He went on to say that if political parties and groups made a concession, problems would be resolved.

"God almighty has said that if you do not settle your disputes, I will replace you with others [other rulers]; therefore we should not allow [this] time for resolving our problems come to pass," Javadi-Amoli cautioned.

Maryam Baqi, the wife of imprisoned journalist Mohammad Qouchani, rejected a report that said she had secretly relayed a message to her husband to refrain from testifying in court.

Jahan News claimed that a prominent member of the Etemad-e Melli party (National Confidence) had asked Baqi to tell Qouchani from giving "a confession" in court.

According to the report, Qouchani, one of Etemad-e Melli newspaper's top editors, had supposedly responded by saying, "It's too late now, I have already told all there is." But on Thursday, Baqi was quoted in a story in Etemad-e Melli saying, "No one has given me a message for my husband. Besides, what other purpose than TV propaganda does the confession of a detainee serve anyway?"

"The [Jahannews] report was published at a time when neither I nor Mr. Qouchani's lawyer were aware that he was to be present at the court hearing on Thursday. The hearing has been postponed until Saturday."

"How is it possible for them to bring Mr. Qouchani to court, when he has not seen his lawyer in 50 days, and when his lawyer had not even been aware of his court date?"

"Furthermore, my husband is a journalist and his case should be heard in the Press Court in the presence of a jury. Even if his charges are political ones, the presence of a jury is necessary."

SHARE

2 Comments

Iran is now half "SAD"(those who want freedom) & half "MAD"(those who want to repress) & that's a sad...sad...fact!